Falls Church Small Businesses Can Apply For Grants By May 15

FALLS CHURCH, VA — The Falls Church Economic Development Authority has extended the deadline to apply for the Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Grant program. As of Tuesday, over 50 applications have been submitted.

Eligible small businesses with fewer than 50 employees can apply until 11:30 p.m. on Friday, May 15. The program provides a one-time grant of up to $2,000 for small businesses to pay salaries, benefits, rent and other operating expenses.

Eligible business types are based on Gov. Ralph Northam's executive order that closed certain non-essential businesses and limited restaurants to takeout and delivery. Businesses deemed essential under the order are allowed to operate normally and cannot receive a grant.

Eligible businesses include:

• Dining establishment, food court, brewery, microbrewery, distillery, winery, tasting room, or farmers market;
• Theater, performing arts center, concert venue, museum, or other indoor entertainment center
• Fitness center, gymnasium, recreation center, indoor sports facility, or indoor exercise facility;
• Beauty salon, barbershop, spa, massage parlor, tanning salon, tattoo shop, or any other personal care or personal grooming business;
• Racetrack or historic horse racing facility;
• Bowling alley, skating rink, arcade, amusement park, trampoline park, fair, arts and craft facility, aquarium, zoo, escape room, or indoor shooting range;
• Public or private social club;
• Any other indoor public amusement;
• Or a brick and mortar retail businesses whose primary revenues are derived from walk-in or in-person sales.

Businesses must provide information on why the grant is needed, how it will be used, what other city assistance is needed, how long it has been operating in the city, if gross receipts are between $50,000 and $500,000 and if the business has a decrease in gross income of at least 50 percent.

Recipients of the grants will be chosen at random once the city confirms which businesses are eligible. Names of the businesses awarded funds may be publicly announced once funds are disbursed.

The grant program comes after Falls Church City Council extended real estate, meals and transient occupancy payment deadlines and eased some zoning restrictions. The second real estate tax payment for fiscal year 2020 is moved from June 5 to July 6. The due date for the meals and transient occupancy taxes was delayed from May 1 to June 1.

The eased zoning regulations include allowance of temporary signs and banners promoting carryout and curbside service without a permit, allowance of taking orders from a business's parking lot or vicinity of the business entrance, and use of assigned parking spaces for takeout service.

SEE ALSO:

• Falls Church T-Shirt Fundraiser Buys Small Business Gift Cards
• Falls Church Businesses Open, Closed During Coronavirus Situation